WordPress is a top-tier offering for anyone choosing a content management system (CMS) for their website. But one question often holds people back: “Is WordPress easy to learn?”

Yes. There’s a learning curve, but anyone can learn to use WordPress. With a bit of practice, you can build any kind of website you want.

However, WordPress is different (and slightly trickier to learn) than other site builders. That’s for good reason: WordPress offers far more customizability and long-term value, which is why it powers over 43% of websites on the internet.

Let’s take an honest look at how hard it really is to learn WordPress, the challenges you might face along the way, and how to overcome them.

How hard is it to learn WordPress

You’re far from alone if you find WordPress hard to learn, especially in the beginning. The WordPress.com forums are full of users — beginners and pros alike — asking questions and sharing advice.

Here are some common things new users find challenging:

WordPress is extremely flexible

Using WordPress is like baking a cake from scratch rather than using a boxed mix. You get complete control over everything — your web host, domain registrar, layout, plugins, and more. That customizability is what makes it powerful, but it can also feel overwhelming. For beginners, the freedom can seem more like a lack of direction.

Tip: WordPress.com offers excellent courses and support documentation that will guide you through setting up your site.

WordPress has its own language

The WordPress ecosystem contains features and terminology that are unique to the platform. For example, it’s easy to get confused about the difference between themes and templates since both affect the appearance of your site. Terms like “widgets,” “slugs,” “custom post types,” and “child themes” may also take some time to fully grasp. Until you’re familiar with the lingo, navigating WordPress can feel like learning a new dialect.

Tip: Our glossary will help you quickly understand basic WordPress terminology.

WordPress setup takes time

WordPress’ customizability means that setting up a website involves several moving parts, like buying a domain, choosing a hosting provider, installing plugins, customizing your theme, and so on. The whole process can take time, even for seasoned WordPress users. But that time investment pays off in the long run because you’re building a website that’s tailored to your needs and goals.

Tip: If you decide to outsource building your website, our website design service offers excellent quality, competitive pricing, and quick turnaround times.

WordPress offers endless choices

The plugin and theme libraries are packed with thousands of options for every feature you could ever need. However, that abundance (especially for plugins that perform the same function) can be overwhelming. Using a bloated theme or adding too many plugins can also slow down your website. It takes time (and trial and error) to find the right combination that works for your needs.

Tip: WordPress.com includes tons of features via Jetpack at no extra charge. All WordPress.com themes are built to perform well too.

Site maintenance is more complex

With WordPress, you’re responsible for your website’s upkeep. That includes managing security, performing regular updates, and creating backups. Skipping these basics or installing poorly vetted plugins can leave your site vulnerable to performance issues, conflicts, or attacks. It’s a bit of extra work, but it’s essential to maintain a stable and secure website.

Tip: Managed hosting providers like WordPress.com can handle all your site’s maintenance and updates, so you’re free to focus on doing what you love.

5 benefits of using WordPress

WordPress can be intimidating at first. But the unmatched flexibility and long-term benefits it offers are something other site builders and CMS platforms simply can’t match.

Despite its learning curve, WordPress is well worth the effort because once you get the hang of it, you unlock a powerful, flexible platform that can grow with your needs for years to come.

Here are five benefits of using WordPress:

1. You own your website and content

The biggest benefit of using WordPress is that it’s open source. This means you own your website entirely, including your content, data, and design. You’re not locked into a specific platform.

The same can’t be said for other website builders, where you can often migrate content, but not the whole site structure and design.

2. You have limitless customization options

With WordPress, you can customize everything about your website. Want to add a new feature using a plugin? Easy. Want to build a one-page site? Possible. Want to create a full-scale ecommerce website? You can do it.

Other site builders make it easy to get started, but it’s much harder to customize your site exactly as you wish.

3. Your CMS and hosting scale with you

Most website builders think of what you need today. But what happens tomorrow? Or five years down the line?

WordPress’ customizability (which can be a little overwhelming at first) also makes it a long-term companion. Its open-source foundation gives you the flexibility to adapt your website as your needs evolve. And with reliable hosting (like WordPress.com), your site can handle surges in traffic while continuing to run smoothly.

4. You become more self-sufficient

Learning WordPress makes you more independent and capable of running your site with confidence. You won’t have to rely on a developer or customer support every time you want to change a layout, add a feature, or update your content.

Over time, these skills can empower you not only to manage your own website but also to offer your services to others. Many freelancers, marketers, and small business owners have turned their WordPress knowledge into a side hustle or even a full-time career.

5. You have a massive community to rely on

Both WordPress.org and WordPress.com offer thorough support documentation, including step-by-step guides and video tutorials. There are also millions of users on forums, Reddit threads, and niche communities that can help with troubleshooting or customizing your site to your liking.

Now that you know why WordPress is worth learning, let’s talk about what the learning process looks like.

Tip: Need a head start? Tools like WordPress.com’s AI website builder make the process even easier, helping you generate a layout, customize it to your needs, and go live in minutes.

How long does it take to learn WordPress?

The time it takes to learn WordPress depends on your goals, how much time you can dedicate, and whether you’ve worked with websites before. While you can get a basic site up and running in a day or two, mastering the platform’s more advanced features takes a bit longer.

Where do you learn about WordPress? A great place to start is with WordPress.org courses. They cover the fundamentals and can be completed in about 10 hours total:

You don’t need to take all three courses to learn how to use WordPress — you can simply start using the platform and learn on the go.

The exciting thing about WordPress, and web development in general, is that the learning never really stops; there’s always something new to discover or improve.

How I learned WordPress (and why you should, too)

I first started tinkering with WordPress at age 17. I wanted to build a blog to sharpen my writing skills and explore the world of content marketing. In the beginning, I hit all the typical roadblocks when setting up the site, choosing the right hosting provider, customizing the theme, and dealing with spam comments. But once I got the hang of it, things clicked, and managing my site became second nature.

I ended up running that website for years and used it as a portfolio for multiple internships. And here’s the kicker: Many of the companies I worked with didn’t just hire me for my marketing skills — they valued the fact that I knew my way around WordPress.

It wasn’t just that I could navigate the backend without breaking anything (though that helped). It was that I had taught myself how to solve problems by reading documentation, watching tutorials, and tapping into the WordPress community.

Later, when I left my full-time job to become a freelance writer, setting up my own site to establish credibility and showcase my portfolio was like riding a bike. The skills I picked up earlier made it easy to hit the ground running.

That’s why I strongly believe that WordPress is worth learning. It’s more than just a CMS or website builder — it’s a valuable skill set that makes you more independent, helps you stand out, and opens up real opportunities.

Whether you’re building your first blog or launching a business, the time you invest in learning WordPress will pay off for years to come. And, like me, once you get into it, you’ll be glad you stuck with it.

How to learn WordPress

We’ve already covered the WordPress course, which explains a lot about how WordPress works and how you can customize it for your needs. Here are a few more resources you can use:

What if you need help from the support team or a fellow WordPress user? Here’s where to reach out:

The WordPress.com booth at WordCamp US.
WordCamp events are another way to connect with fellow WordPress users. They are large and exciting conferences held all around the world throughout the year. Learn more at central.wordcamp.org.

Hosting with WordPress

Many of the frustrations people face with WordPress aren’t with the platform itself, but rather from poor-quality hosting. When your site is slow, buggy, or keeps crashing, it’s hard to enjoy the process of building anything.

The solution? Choose a hosting provider like WordPress.com, which combines the best features of WordPress (customization, flexibility, and long-term value) with the ease and convenience of reliable hosting, built-in security, and hands-off maintenance.

Build your site with WordPress.com
Migrate your site to WordPress.com